Mistborn: The Final Empire Group Read Part V

The Conclusion is upon us! At least until we tackle the second book in the series.

This week's questions were supplied by Stainless Steel Droppings, who masterminded this whole group read, so make sure to stop by his place and see what his thoughts are on the end of Book I.

With much begging and pleading from those who reign above (at my local internet repair headquarters), El Internet was returned to service this morning after roughly 36 hours of me being left to my own devices. Which mostly involved cooking and cleaning. Having risen this morning to view that tell-tale light upon the modem, joy surged through me, only to find my desktop monitor had died in the night. A second of silence please.

Luckily, this is a geek and nerd household and there is this trusty little laptop.

Without more pissing and moaning, here are the final questions.

1.  So, what do you think of Kelsier's plan now? Or his 'plan within a plan'?  How do you feel the late introduction of the kandra and how it fit into Kelsier's plan?




It was very touching to find out that Kelsier planned all along for him not to come out on top, and yet for the rebellion to continue on. At the beginning, even tho I liked Kell, I kind of felt this was about his ego, his need. His ending showed that his drive went beyond that.

2.  The final section of the book was very Vin-centric.  How do you feel about the choices she made and did you have any worries/fears about what might happen to her before everything was resolved?

OMG - there were several points where I wanted to slap her and tell her it's OK to regroup and fight another day. You don't have to get yourself killed today! But I think it held true to form - what we have seen of her stubbornness. Yeah, but I was concerned that Vin might be joining the ranks of the daft & dead sooner than anticipated.

3.  After all that we find out that the Lord Ruler wasn't the prophesied one after all.  Surprised? Had you figured it out?  What thoughts do you have about the big reveal, including how it tied into Sazed's people?

Another blogger last week (forgive my memory, can't recall who) had guessed this, and I thought it was a pretty interesting idea. So, when the reveal came I was still surprised, but it all clicked right away.


I wonder if the Terrismen will have some sort of racial grieving over all the damage the Lord ruler has done over the years and will, in some way, feel as tho they must apologize to the world.

Whatever their motivation, they will now be free to share all that stored knowledge, dance in the streets naked, and breed freely.

4.  There was some back and forth about Elend throughout the story and we finally got to see him take a greater stand.  Any predictions about what might happen in book two with Elend taking on leadership duties?

Elend had some nasty shocks, didn't he? His father leaving him to face certain doom alone, taking charge, turning himself over, going on a suicide mission to rescue Vin; the boy became a man in a few hours and did it well.

I look forward to watching his character grow in Book 2. It should be interesting to see how many of the nobles follow him, what they think of his alliance with Vin and the rebel leaders, and what happens if his father returns. I think someone might be due for a spanking and it won't be Elend.

5.  Lastly, provide a little wrap up of your experience with the book.  What do you think Sanderson's strengths are?  How does this book stack up against other fantasies you've read?

Sanderson builds a fascinating world, with rules and class norms, and holds to them throughout the book. Then, he builds an awesome plot to stick in that world, one that allows his characters to have a past and a future. My first Sanderson book was The Way of Kings, which is his latest and greatest; In reading Mistborn: TFE, I am impressed at how much of that writing skill was there all those years ago, and merely has been refined over time. 

This has been an awesome ride and reading the book for the first time as part of a group read made it more enjoyable. Thanks everyone!

Other Thoughts:
Vin kicks ass!
I wonder which, if any, of the rebel leaders will be opposed to joining forces with the nobles?
Will folks trust Marsh even tho he basically saved Vin? Can he rule the remaining Steel Inquisitors? Will he have to destroy them too?
I want to learn more about gold, the 11th metal, and atium; are there more metals for them to play with?
Where is all that atium anyway?
What was the Lord Ruler protecting the world from?
Vin kicks ass!